Alcohol's physiological toll: dehydration, cell damage

December 27, 2006|JEREMY D. BONFIGLIO Tribune Staff Writer

Hangover. It's the one word that strikes fear into the most seasoned of holiday revelers. The morning-after punishment associated with post-celebratory excess curbs our appetite, zaps our energy and leaves our head throbbing. Unlike the alcohol-laced experiences that precede them, hangovers are often long complicated matters as far as human anatomy is concerned. "A bout of drinking can affect nearly every system," says Dr. Fred Freitag, associate director of the Diamond Headache Clinic in Chicago. Although scientists theorize that genetics, hypoglycemia and vitamin B-12 deficiency contribute to hangover symptoms, most experts agree that the physiological response to processing alcohol causes the severe dehydration, inflammation of blood vessels and cell damage that typify the morning after. Even social drinkers are not immune to the hangover. Recent studies show it can take as few as two or three drinks for hangover symptoms to develop. There is some good news. The suffering will eventually subside. It just may take a day or so. "The brain is able to do repairs," Freitag says. "It's not like you're going to drink yourself into stupidity." We just may feel that way, crouched next to the toilet bowl.